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Photo: Alex Lear / The Forecaster

North Yarmouth firefighters Kristen Olsen, left, and Anne Smith show off new gear and tools purchased for their department recently by the North Yarmouth Fire Company. Flashlights, spanner wrenches, training mannequins, and automated external defibrillators were among items bought with the approximately $5,000 in donations.

When town growth triggered formation of the department in 2011, the Fire Company remained a separate entity, supporting the department's mission in several ways, including education, fire-scene and after-call support, and fundraising. The company manages its own donations, while the town manager and Board of Selectmen manage money donated to the department.

Donated funds for the company come largely through the "Bottle Barn" behind the fire station, where returnables sorted by company members, and events such as bean suppers, according to firefighter Anne Smith, an emergency medical technician with the department who is also a member of the company.

Money "comes in at various times," she said Monday. "We respond to calls, and people greatly appreciate the work that we do, so a lot of times they'll send in a donation of thanks for our assistance."

Many local businesses have also chipped in, Smith said.

Of the recent $5,000, about $3,000 went toward sets of adult and child mannequins, training on automated external defibrillators, and a moulage casualty simulation kit – used to create fake, but realistic, wounds for training purposes.

The other $2,000 went toward tools for new firefighters, including spanner wrenches, wire cutters and flashlights. Instead of having to run back to the fire truck in emergencies for certain tools, they now will be carrying the new sets.

"It's really more about a community pulling together, rather than a money maker," Smith said. "But it always helps when we have large amounts of people come out to our bean dinners and things like that."

She added that "it's always nice to have the support of the Fire Company who, at four in the morning, will find some place that's open, to go buy eggs and bacon after we've worked all night in a fire."

It is rare for a department member to not be with the company as well, but there are many company members who are not in the department, Smith said. The company is always looking for new members; applications can be picked up at the fire station, and those interested in joining can attend the group's meetings, held at the station at 7 p.m. the second Monday of every month.

People can donate by sending a check payable to the Fire Company at 463 Walnut Hill Road, North Yarmouth, ME 04097.